Home Health and Home Care sound very similar but are distinctly different. Home Health offers skilled care, often covered by Medicare and other insurances while Home Care offers non-medical or custodial care covered by private pay or long-term care insurance (reimbursement or direct assignment).
Home Health is a clinical service offered through a home health agency. It is usually prescribed by a physician and can include physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT), speech therapy (ST), skilled nursing (SN), and medical social worker (MSW).
This service is ideal for seniors who have recently been discharged from a hospital, or rehab center; are homebound; or have a qualifying diagnosis such as weakness, falls, or overall decline in function.
Home Care is non-medical or custodial care for a senior who needs help with homemaking such as laundry, light housekeeping and meal preparation; companionship; or standby or hands-on assistance with the activities of daily living (ADLs) such as bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, transferring, walking, feeding, and continence. These services are provided by a certified nursing assistant (CNA) or home health aide (HHA).
Home Care is essential for a senior who needs a little extra assistance staying safe and independent in their home. Services range from preparing a home-cooked meal to ensuring that a loved one showers safely or can toilet safely in the middle of the night – services not usually covered by Medicare or other insurances through home health.
Oftentimes, Seniors need both Home Health and Home Care to remain safe and independent in their home environment. By way of example, a senior could benefit from physical therapy home exercises for strengthening during the day, but what happens when the PT’s home visit ends and the senior needs toileting assistance in the middle of the night? This is where a CNA or HHA could make all the difference helping the senior transfer out of bed, walk to the toilet, toilet, and then walk back to bed and get into bed safely.
Asking for someone to lend a hand can be hard to do, but it’s important. Oftentimes seniors will call us when they want to stay safely, securely, and independently in their home and this often includes helping arrange Home Health services.
Depending on what you need, Collier Home Care offers between one and 24 hours a day service, plus live-in care. It is our pleasure to care for you!
If we can help with home health care services or determine an appropriate level of care, call us at (239) 920-3902 or reach us here.